Cascais is an easy train ride away from Lisbon, but is relatively unknown as far as Portugal goes. It's a great town with a fantastic harbour and lots of shops and restaurants, including the amazing Enoteca Cascais which has great food and an amazing selection of Portuguese wines. Portugal doesn't export most of it's best wine so you can try things you wouldn't get in the UK. When we visited, there was a food, drink and music festival in town; we were the only non-Portuguese people there and it was a great way of experiencing local life.
Cascais is a mecca for windsurfers. Near the windsurfing beaches you'll also find the Boca Del Inferno; a gaping chasm in the sea which really does roar! You can also easily get to Sintra, which is a UNESCO world heritage site and consists of a palace, a castle and a national park. It is breathtaking.
Google map: bit.ly/hce61D
www.cascais.net/guide/
As you enter the Nuno Velloso Riding School, you know you are in the right place. Stunning horses, beautiful grounds and dedicated instructors with small riding groups. A world apart from any riding school I have ever known. The perfect place for a holiday for the family or a few friends. In the school holidays, the children can stay all day/week and adults can choose - maybe riding in the morning, go off to the beach, or play golf or tennis in the afternoon, and go to Lisbon in the evening. A great way to spend a holiday and affordable.
Quinta da Marinha 2750-715 Cascais
www.equitacaodesportiva.com/
www.nunovelloso.info/
Google map: tinyurl.com/34opvfo
From Cascais train station it is a 10 to 15 minute drive and is on the same grounds as the Quinta da Marinha Golf Hotel.
A great wine bar at Casa da Guia near Cascais, with simple delicious food and, of course, very good wine. Fantastic views of the Atlantic Ocean. Well worth a visit.
The best ice cream you'll ever taste! Santini was an Italian immigrant who invented ice creams with a special recipe. The ice cream store still exists and maintains the quality of old days.
Av. Valbom, 28 F, 2750 Cascais
(McDonalds is on the corner), right next to the railway station, downtown Cascais;
tel: 21 483 37 09;
www.geladosantini.com
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